Corruption generates fake news, the fake news gives birth to #corruption

"There is a symbiosis between big national televisions, social media and a certain group of news agencies. Media owners, journalists, politicians and citizens must unite around building a strategy to eradicate these vicious practices" - said MEP Nikolay Barekov at a recent  round table on topic "Corruption and the genesis of fake news in Bulgaria"

The event was held under the auspices of the Group of European Conservatives and Reformists (ECR) and the MEP Nikolay Barekov in partnership with State University of Library Studies and Information Technologies (SULSIT).

As guest lecturers, following participants took part in the forum: Prof. Dr. Stoyan Denchev - Professor, Doctor of Economic Sciences, Rector of the University of Library Science and Information Technologies in Sofia, Mr. Colin Stevens - editor-in-chief of EU Reporter, Prof. Dr. Teodora Petrova - Dean of the Faculty of Journalism and Mass Communication of the Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski” and Nikola Mitev- media analyst and PR expert.

Nikolay Barekov is categorical that in Bulgaria there is an absolute media monopoly. As a clear example, he referred to the so-called "Capital" Circle, which in his words not only owns his own media, but has also possess entire journalistic teams working on national televisions. According to the MEP, the issue of fake news is rooted in the fact that they are born anonymously, but are sponsored by money coming from corruption and illegitimate political practices.

"In this way, the false news itself produces corruption," Barekov says.

"The first sign that we can know that there is a factory for false news is when there is no legitimate reason for the emergence of capital that sustains a certain circle of media. This fund lightens the fake news through the national televisions, because they are the real media that people believe in, "Barekov is categorical.

In this regard, the MEP pointed out that the proposed amendments to the Law on the Mandatory Deposit of printed and other works are not sufficient. In his words, the legislators should consider imposing punitive measures when media with unclear capital are created and funded. Barekov also promoted the idea of introducing the term "journalistic lobbyism ". His motive is that, once it exists, it must be legitimized.

According to the MEP, the problem of targeted disinformation of citizens is rooted on the national televisions and Internet sites, not in press, as the market for printed editions is heavily narrowed.

"Electronic media, which are under absolute media monopoly, generate huge confidence in the vast group of people," Barekov said and presumed that define circles of people struggling for political and economic influence in our country, benefit precisely from this.

Barekov also touched on the topic of censorship in the leading national televisions. As an example, he pointed to the fact that for the last three years, none of these media had invited him as a Member of the European Parliament and a member of the third largest party in the EP (ECR) to discuss issues of a European nature.

Mr. Colin Stevens, editor-in-chief of  EU Reporter, also joined the public debate during the round table. All political groups strive for media influence over people, politicians control the content of information streams, he thinks. In his words, fake news are being used to manipulate public opinion and politicians use them, to influence their citizens.

Colin Stevens also listed the measures he believes should be taken to eradicate these vicious practices. According to him, there must be a process in which to identify which news are false and which are real, there must be means to expose the financial channels of the media and, most importantly, people need to be educated, to know that there are fake news and they can be posted. It is very important to reduce the impact of fake news, and this can be done through education of societies, said the owner of EUreporter.

Dean of the Faculty of Journalism and Mass Communication at Sofia University St. Kliment Ohridski, Prof. Dr. Teodora Petrova, expressed concerns during the discussion, that the issue of fake news is becoming more and more serious. In the words and their concentration is so great that the media can no longer fulfill its social function. "We cannot give a credit to media content, people have reduced already their consumption," she said.

The main reason for the growing epidemic of fake news is the existence of the social networks and their widespread use by consumers, because through them the fake news lightning fast spread. According to Prof. Dr. Teodora Petrova, the main tools of combating these news is education and building a critical threshold in young people.

During the event Nikola Mitev presented a report which expose international NGO ‘Reporters Without Borders’, reveals under the influence of which political and economic circles is the formation.

The research that this association draws on is about the freedom of the press, not of the speech, which makes their annual ratings irrelevant to the overall media freedom in Bulgaria, says Mitev. In front of a full hall he presented a presentation material, revealing in concrete the relationships of ‘Reporters Without Borders’ with ‘America for Bulgaria’ and the ‘Capital’ Circle.

These surveys are made by a circle of media and non-governmental organizations which are united by a common financial interest, he states. According to him, there are many details that are saved and the thesis of Bulgaria’s collapse in the index of the freedom of the speech is being used too speculatively.

Mitev is categorical that everyone should be involved in the ranking, practicing the profession of journalist, from the respective territory. "Nowhere in the information published by ‘Reporters Without Borders’ does not appear the names of the journalists, who participated in the polls, on which the ranking are based, nor the organizations, who are involved in the formation of the assessment under this index ", the media analyst said.

From which Bulgarian associations, media and journalists declare their partners in our Country we can judge and who is actually involved in these studies, said Mitev and listed them, with whom "Reporters Without Borders" have a cooperative relationship: ‘Bivol’ , ‘The Association of European Journalists and the Union of Publishers in Bulgaria’, whose members are Ivo Prokopiev, Sasho Donchev, Stoyana Georgieva and Ognyan Donev, or so-called ‘Circle Kapital’, which is entirely financed by ‘America for Bulgaria’.

In order to clarify the situation, Nicola Mitev told the participants in the round table how the Foundation ‘America for Bulgaria’ was actually born. This is a Bulgarian- American Enterprise Fund, which exists in Bulgaria from 1991 until 2007. Then we become a Member of the European Union and on the territory of Europe no one outside the Union has no right to fund a judicial, educational or other systems linked to the internal security.  For that reason, this investment fund was transformed into a Foundation ‘America for Bulgaria’, created with money from the Bulgarian-American Bank", the media analyst said. For final Mitev declared that ‘Reporters without Borders’ are partly funded by the US National Fund for Democracy and the non-governmental organizations of George Soros, which means that in both cases funding cames from the same center of influence.

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